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Category Archives: Corruption

CBI in the government agency which enquires in to corruption cases etc. Now its own Special Director, Rakesh Asthana has been charged with corruption as an accused for allegedly demanding and taking bribe from a businessman who was being investigated in the Moin Qureshi corruption case by a special investigation team led by Rakesh Asthana.

It is to be noted that the accused is very closed connected with the Prime Minister as per paper reports.

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Senior Advocate and social activist Prashant Bhooshan, former Cabinet Ministers and senior BJP leaders Arun Shourie and Yeshwant Sinha have jointly demanded that all the details of the Rafale Aircraft deal with France should be placed before the public. They alleged that Rafale is the biggest scandal with Rs. 35,000 crore in the deal. They also stated that ” the deal is an “enormous scandal that jeopardizes national security.” Advocate Prashant Bhooshan stated that it is the biggest defence scam in the country.

The Rajya Sabha has been adjourned several times in this matter. The charge is that 36 Rafale fighters are being bought for about three times the price of the aircraft to benefit the corporates including Reliance Defence and Aerospace, the company owned by Mukesh Ambani, who is very close to the Prime Minister.

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The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:

Hypocrisy of Fight against Corruption

At the BJP’s National Executive, the Prime Minister thundered that “there would be no compromise or leniency on corruption”.

The CPI(M)’s position on fighting growing political corruption is well-known, both in its conduct and its concrete proposals to end this scourge.

The hypocrisy of the Prime Minister and the BJP government lies in the fact that while they are pursuing corruption cases against leaders of the opposition, this government in these three years has not even implemented the law enacted by the Parliament to establish the Lokpal.

There is no step being taken by this government to investigate scams like Vyapam; Srijan housing scam in Bihar; the Birla-Sahara diaries; the Panama papers; the Lalit Modi case; the mining scandal in Karnataka that led to the resignation of BJP Chief Minister in the state; land grab case by BJP leaders in Maharashtra and Uttarakhand; PDS scam in Chattisgarh; the Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) scam etc. etc. The list of corruption scams in BJP ruled states goes on and on. Yet there is no investigation in any one of these.

Clearly, the Prime Minister’s exhortations are a cover to selectively choose cases against political opponents in the name of fighting corruption while protecting his own party and governments who are involved in allegations of huge corruption at high places.

The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) demands that all such allegations must be subject to an impartial enquiry and action be taken against the guilty.

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The Public Accounts Committee of the Parliament has criticised the method in the contract of Public Private Participation (PPP) both in the GVK controlled Mumbai Airport and also in the case of DIAL controlled Delhi Airport.

The cost of the Mumbai Project was estimated first at Rs. 5,826 crore initially, but the cost rose to more than 100% to Rs.12,380 crore. The PAC also stated that this is similar to the PPP implemented in the DIAL controlled Delhi Airport.

What the trade unions and Left Parties have been telling is proved true. The PPP is nothing short of privatisation to ensure that the private companies reap huge profit out of the government properties and assets.

The case of the VVIP Chopper purchase from Augusta Westland by the Government of India has once again come to the focus after the Italian Court has jailed the officers of the company for bribing Indian officials and politicians.

Who are these persons who received benefit out of these deals? It is doubtful whether any disclosure will be made since the people behind are powerful people of politics, bureaucracy and intermediaries.

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9th December is being organised as the International Anti-Corruption Day. This day is being observed as such since 2005.

In India, corruption has gone beyond all limits. The common people are fed up with the corruption at all levels. Politicians, government officials – all are involved in corruption and the same is more at the highest levels. BSNL is not exempt. A large number of vigilance cases are pending against, mainly top officers. There should be an end to it.

The message for the day from the UN Secretary General is given below:

“The new 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, our plan to end poverty and ensure lives of dignity for all, recognizes the need to fight corruption in all its aspects and calls for significant reductions in illicit financial flows as well as for the recovery of stolen assets. ”

A report by PTI is given below about the massive bribery by MNC Wal-Mart in India. Thousands of people have been bribed to get customs clearing etc. It is an international scandal. How to stop corruption and bribery? Will the Mody Government take action?

“New York, Oct 19 : A US government investigation is said to have found evidence of Wal-Mart Stores Inc allegedly paying thousands of small bribes to Indian officials to get customs clearances and obtain real-estate permits, the Wall Street Journal reported today.

Vast majority of payments were below USD 200 (about Rs 13,000 at current exchange rate) and some were as low as USD 5(Rs 330) but together totalled millions of dollars.

The three-year federal probe “found evidence of bribery in India, centring on widespread but relatively small payments made to local officials there”, the Journal reported citing persons it didn’t identify.

“Much of the suspected bribery investigators unearthed in India involves thousands of small payments to low-level local officials to help move goods through customs or obtain real-estate permits.

“The vast majority of the suspicious payments were lessthan USD 200, and some were as low as USD 5,” it said. “But when added together they totalled millions of dollars.”

The world’s largest retailer entered India in 2007through a supermarket joint venture with Bharti Enterprisesbut split up in 2013. Since then, it is mostly focused onwholesale business.

Wall Street Journal said investigators found similar payments in Mexico, but “the bulk of such activity seemed to be in India”. (PTI)

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It is reported in today’s newspapers that a Rs.27 crore have been recovered from a raid by the CBI from the house of a contractor of “Neer” (drinking water) being supplied to the Railway. It is estimated by the CBI that he has made about Rs. 500 crore from the contract during the last 10 years, during which period he was supplying more than 70% of the “Neer” bottle water required for the passengers travelling in the Railways. The contractor had close connection with high officers and ministers. He has floated many companies for getting the tender. It is also mentioned that the contractor was selling the bottle water for Rs. 15/- while he purchased the same at Rs.6/- per bottle and the water was not purified as required.

This raises two very important questions.How and why the Railway department was allowing the contractor to cheat the people both on the price and the hygienic condition of the water? Who are all onnected with this big scam?

Immediate action is required and the guilty, however high they may be, should be brought to book. This is an issue of the health of crores of people who travel in the railways and believe about the quality of the water and drink it.

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Modi Government had stated that it expected about about Rs. 7,000 crores black money will come out by way of the chance given to persons to declare the same. But after the expiry of the last date only Rs. 3,770 has been declared by 638 persons. There are thousands of persons still to declare. What action the government is going to take?